ABOUT THE PROJECT

The Sexual Violence Prevention Collaborative consists of five local nonprofits working together to eliminate sexual violence across the 23 towns and cities that comprise Fairfield County. SVPC’s inaugural project, Coaches as Partners, works to engage youth sports coaches and athletic directors in the prevention of sexual violence. Our goal is to bring awareness and education about the critical role athletic leaders play in promoting an inclusive and respectful sports and school culture. The Sexual Violence Prevention Collaborative is funded by Fairfield County’s Community Foundation’s Fund for Women & Girls. Participating organizations include:

ABOUT THE ISSUES

Our game plan is to build partnerships with coaches and athletic directors, who often spend more time with students than many teachers or family members. Our premise is that these individuals wield a significant amount of influence on their athletes and can shift the paradigm by modeling prosocial behaviors and demonstrating what it means to be an ally in ending sexual violence through knowledge of the issues and expansive intervention tools.

“Sports involvement is associated with pro-social values and skills among youth, including accountability, social cohesion, and selfcontrol, all of which are sexual violence prevention factors. In addition, athletes and coaches are frequently viewed as leaders within their local and sport communities and can have enormous influence on changing the paradigms related to masculinity, aggression, and acceptability of sexual violence.” – How Sport Can End Sexual Violence in One Generation, RALIANCE

BECOMING A PARTNER

Through interactive workshops, Coaches as Partners gives leaders in the athletic community the tools to shift the culture and end sexual violence. The titles of these workshops are:

To explore bringing this project and its accompanying workshops to your school or community, reach out to us atsvprevention@fccfoundation.org. Search #CoachesAsPartners on your favorite social media platform to join the huddle!